Holy Island of Lindisfarne

Marygate

The Holy Island of Lindisfarne, a name often shortened to "Holy
Island" or to "Lindisfarne", is a tidal island off the coast of Northumberland
some nine miles south east of
Berwick-upon-Tweed and
six miles north west of Bamburgh. It is usually reached
by a minor road that leaves the A1 a little over a mile south east of
Haggerston and heads towards the coast, before crossing the
tidal causeway to the island itself.

In many ways Lindisfarne is defined by its status as a tidal island.
What this means in practice is that the island is accessible by road for
roughly half the time, and inaccessible for the other half; and the timing of
the periods of accessibility change daily with the tides. We have a separate
feature about the Lindisfarne Causeway,
but it is worth remembering that no visit to Lindisfarne should be contemplated
without first checking the tide tables to see when the causeway will be open,
and no attempt should be made to cross when the causeway is closed: especially
when it is closed by a rising tide. The site linked on the right has current
information about times when the causeway is open.

Lindisfarne itself is a tadpole shaped island. The "head" is
rectangular in shape and about a mile and a half from north to south and a mile
from east to west. The "tail" extends narrowly west from the upper part of the
"head" and means that the island measures some three miles overall from east to
west.

There are slightly more than 160 permanent residents on Lindisfarne,
and almost all live in the island's only village, which is found at the south
west corner of the "head" of the tadpole. For residents, the tidal nature of
the access is a dominant feature of day to day life. Everything from shopping
to arranging domestic or business deliveries, and from secondary schooling to
routine medical care, has to take account of the tides.

And the tides also have a huge impact on the many businesses on the
island serving the needs of visitors. Each year the residents play host to some
650,000 visitors to their island. Most visitors arrive and depart within the
same 6 hour (or so) window during which the causeway is open, though when the
period of closure is in the middle of the day and the weather is fine, many
visitors do stay on Lindisfarne to experience it as an island: their numbers
boosted by the excursion boats that arrive at the island's harbour from
Seahouses during the season.
Far fewer stay on the island when it truly is an island if arrival and
departure is not possible on the same day, as there are only some 40 letting
rooms available on Lindisfarne. Booking ahead is highly advisable.

From a visitor's point of view, Lindisfarne is a wonderful place to
visit at any time of year, but there is no escaping the fact that many of the
things to do here are out of doors, which means that it is at its best when the
sun is shining. Everyone else knows that too, so this is also a place that can
become very busy at weekends and in the school holidays, when the weather is
fine and the tides are right. It depends what you are looking for, but if you
want to experience the peace and tranquility which gave Holy Island that part
of its name, then you need to find a way of experiencing it as an island,
ideally when a period of closure of the causeway isn't timed to encourage too
many other people to do the same thing.

Assuming you are arriving by road, as most people do, and assuming
you've checked the tide times to ensure you can leave when you want to at the
end of your visit, your experience of Lindisfarne starts with the road that
sweeps round the tail of the island before arriving at the main car park, on
the north side of the village. All visitors should park in this car park to
help avoid the village being totally overrun, and enjoy the 10 minute walk from
there to the village itself. Disabled parking is available in the coach park
nearer the centre of the village. The modest walk from the car park can be
avoided if you wish, using the shuttle bus that links the car park, the village
and Lindisfarne Castle, which can
be found two thirds of a mile east of the village.

The village on Lindisfarne repays exploration as there is a great
deal to see here. The main east west axis is provided by Marygate, home to the
post office and shop, as well as the Lindisfarne Heritage Centre and
Lindisfarne Gospels Garden. The
Heritage Centre is a great place to find out about the history, both human and
natural, of the island. The focus for the southern part of the village is the
Village Cross, not far from the attractive visitor centre and shop for
Lindisfarne Mead.

An important part of the island's history can be explored for real
on the south side of the village, where you find the extensive ruins of
Lindisfarne Priory and its
museum, and the neighbouring St Mary's
Church. Christianity took root on Holy Island after Saint Aidan arrived in
635, and the work was later carried forward by the better known Saint Cuthbert.
Attacks by Vikings from 793 caused this early monastery to be abandoned, but
its site was later used for the
priory whose ruins you can still see today, and for the neighbouring
St Mary's Church.

A later period of Lindisfarne's history can be explored at
Lindisfarne Castle, the island's
(literally) most outstanding feature. What you find is a remarkable fusion of a
Tudor artillery fort and an Edwardian country mansion, standing on top of the
30m high Beblowe Crag near the south east corner of the island. The walk to
the castle is invigorating but,
again, can be avoided by using the shuttle bus. This corner of the island is
home to two more attractions that should not be missed. The
Holy Island Lime Kilns are some of the
largest and best preserved in England and are well worth a visit. Also nearby
is the Gertrude Jekyll Garden
developed in the castle's old
walled vegetable garden in 1911 and restored in 2003.

If you are walking back to the village from the
castle, then an essential detour
is to skirt round the head of the bay to the harbour. En route you pass the
many sheds constructed from the upturned hulls of boats that are so
characteristic of Lindisfarne. Some have seen better days, though many clearly
still remain in use. The harbour itself comprises a pier projecting from the
headland known as Steel End, and this can be a busy place with fishing boats
jostling for space with leisure craft and with tour boats from
Seahouses. As you walk back
along the pier, look out on the headland on your left for the remains of the
little known Osborne's Fort, once an important
part of the harbour's defences.

The ridge of rock on which Lindisfarne Castle stands continues
on the east side of the harbour, where it is known as The Heugh. This is the
second most prominent feature on the island and a walk along it from the rear
of the harbour to the old coastguard lookout (now used by English Nature) and
the neighbouring ruined Lantern Chapel is an essential part of any visit to the
island. What makes it so special are the views it gives over the village to the
north and, especially, over Lindisfarne Priory. It is also a
good place from which to view St Cuthbert's Isle, just to the south west: a
tidal island off a tidal island.

Most visitors to Lindisfarne remain in the area of the village, the
harbour and the castle, which
between them occupy only a small part of the area of the island. If you have
time, and if you have elected to stay while the causeway is closed you probably
will, it is worth taking a look at the rest of the island. Much of the north
west is occupied by large beaches (somewhat less large at high tide) and
extensive dune systems, and these extend along the north coast past the old
limestone quarries at Nessend and the worker's village now said to be lost
under the sand. This part of the island is now largely uninhabited. The
exception to this is Snook Tower, hidden amid the dunes and possibly built in
the early 1800s as a lookout tower.

When visiting Holy Island on a busy day, it is easy to forget the
significance of this part of its name. The island remains a special place for
many Christians. There are no fewer than three churches here: Anglican, United
Reformed, and Catholic. There are also two Christian retreat centres on the
island, and it is worth remembering that pilgrimage is not entirely a thing of
the past in this rather special place.